The surprisingly safe diabetes drug that does more than just control your blood sugar
This year marks two and a half decades since the FDA approved metformin in the U.S.
Since then, the drug has become the primary go-to medication for controlling diabetes symptoms.
Even with dozens of much newer diabetes drugs on the market, many doctors start off treatment for newly diagnosed diabetic patients with the tried-and-true metformin. And while many pharmaceutical medications come with a litany of hazardous side effects, metformin has proven to be an exception.
In fact, even though metformin has been around for years, research is still revealing new benefits.
For instance, in November 2019, scientists found that metformin kills a dangerous pathogen known as mycobacteria. This deadly bacteria can trigger tuberculosis and leprosy.
Other research has shown that metformin promotes weight loss. One of the keys to this benefit is a protein called GDF15, which also plays an important role in controlling type 2 diabetes.
But these aren’t the only benefits metformin has to offer…
Blocking sugar from your bloodstream
In his Inflammation Fighting Protocol, Dr. Micozzi stresses the importance of metformin’s effect on your microbiome (the complete genetic material in your digestive tract, or gut).
He cites a study where researchers placed newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetics on metformin or a placebo. After four months, the metformin group showed marked benefits in the health of their microbiome.
“In fact,” Dr. Micozzi adds, “metformin seemed to increase the growth of several bacterial species linked to improved blood sugar metabolism.
“The benefits were so strong, the researchers switched members of the placebo group over to the drug. They also then began to show similar benefits.”
In other research from this same team, metformin was found to work as a sugar-blocker—right in the gut. That means it prevents the release of sugar into the bloodstream.
Dr. Micozzi notes why this is highly significant: “It explains why the drug helps reduce the risk of other diseases and extends longevity—because sugar causes inflammation, which drives most diseases.”
To illustrate why this is so important, Dr. Micozzi compares the action of metformin to that of insulin or insulin-like drugs. He points out that these drugs push the sugar from your blood into your cells. That solves the blood sugar problem, but then your cells are overloaded with sugar—a very unhealthy tradeoff.
He says, “Keeping the sugar from ever getting into your blood in the first place is a much more natural, safe, and effective approach.”
One important caveat…
Metformin has one key drawback: It can reduce your absorption of vitamin B12. But as Dr. Micozzi points out, this is easily remedied with a good quality B complex supplement.
He underlines the importance for older individuals in particular to keep up their level of B12 which is vitally important for nerve and brain health.
So if you take metformin, Dr. Micozzi highly recommends you also take a daily B complex supplement that contains at least these amounts of three B vitamins:
- B2—Riboflavin: 50 mg
- B3—Niacin/niacinamide: 50 mg
- B12—cobalamin: 12 micrograms
And you can boost these amounts naturally with vitamin B-rich foods such as chicken, eggs, leafy green vegetables, and wild salmon.
Click here to learn more inflammation reducing strategies in Dr. Micozzi’s Inflammation Fighting Protocol that can help you avoid dangerously chronic conditions and diseases that deplete your health.
Or click here to get started today.
SOURCES
“Wonder drug? Exploring the molecular mechanisms of metformin, a diabetes drug with Medieval roots” Medical Xpress, 1/10/20. (https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-01-drug-exploring-molecular-mechanisms-metformin.html)